The last post...

Hi everyone!

Max is back at school today, so I thought I'd wrap up our time in Taiwan.
On our last day (Friday) we spent the morning packing, then took the train into the Xinyi District so that Max could enjoy "Dan Ryan's restaurant" one last time.  We did a little last minute shopping with the two little kids asleep in the slings and headed back to the hotel. I must admit I felt a touch of sadness taking these two precious kids out of their cultural environment and back into Australia. It makes me remember how important it is to keep those links in place as they grow up.

We headed out to the airport and started our plane journey home. We went via Hong Kong. George was a star on both flights. He slept half the way to Hong Kong, then the entire way from Hong Kong to Brisbane! How fortunate were we?! Evie was not that well on the flight and was battling a cold. She didn't sleep very well at all and it was really hard on her.

It was so nice to be back in Brisbane and we were met by a welcoming group from our Taiwan Adoption support group, as well as some very good friends who had brought our car to the airport for us (and left dinner and lots of extras in the fridge---thanks Judy!!). We were so touched that so many took the effort to meet us and we felt like celebrities with the cameras snapping!! Thanks everyone!

It was good to be home. George looked so relaxed as soon as we popped him on the floor in his sister's room. He soon found lots of things to explore. He has continued to amaze us by sleeping 2 nights from 7pm to 7am and two good sleeps during the day. He is such a happy little guy and we know we will have so much fun with him. God is good.

Our little Evie is still not 100% and has been battling a fever ever since we got home. It has made us lie low for a while which is good for George.

Thanks everyone for following our blog. I know many of you were trying to post comments but couldn't seem to make it work. I'm sorry about that and don't know why it was so hard?

I should also thank Max who wrote most of this blog. Dylan and I are so glad we took him with us to Taiwan. We would have really been stuck in many situations without him. He entertained Evie when we needed to spend time with George, he was our porter at the airport, often juggling most of the bags and he never complained that he was bored (even though he may have been!).

Thanks again,

Just home from the airport - checking out Evie's room!

Team meeting in George's room

"Sailor George" bib from the USA

Catching up with Grandad

Gillian (on behalf of DGME&G) xxx

Thursday

Hi Everyone

Yesterday morning, we went to the Taipei zoo. We took the train to the zoo, and we got the seat at the front (no driver) so we could see really well. We all really enjoyed the zoo, but Evie liked it the most. We didn't have time to see all the animals, but we went off and saw the African animals and the pandas. We really enjoyed the panda shop and we bought lots of stuff.  On the way back home, we got the same seats at the front of the train. We had a quiet afternoon and Mum and Dad went to an amazing stationery shop. We went to Cafe Grazzie for dinner (an Italian restaurant) and the food was really nice. After Evie went to sleep, Dad and I headed off to some small, local night markets, but as Dad would say, 'they were a bit of a fizzer.' We decided to go for a walk, and stumbled across a baby shop that sold food that we were running low on for George. Today, we are packing up. We have to leave our room at 12 pm and we are getting picked up for our plane at 4.30pm. We plan to hopefully make it to Dan Ryan's (HOPEFULLY!) and then do some last minute shopping at the department stores near Taipei 101. Our plane leaves Taipei at 7pm and we fly via Hong Kong.

Max

Max's latest outfit!!

Believe it or not, but this monkey is actually sucking on a baby's dummy

 

Evie checking out the hippo's

George with Panda in the background

This shop at the zoo sells all things to do with Panda's

 

We are sitting at the front of the train - not sure where the driver is??

Wednesday

Hey Everyone

Yesterday, we met Evie's and George's birth family and it went really well. We also met the staff who helped with the adoption process here in Taiwan. After that, we met our friend Linda McKerrell, a missionary here in Taiwan. We had lunch with her at Dan Ryan's. The food was sooo good, and the food was served in American sizes. After lunch, we went to check out Chiang Kai-Shek memorial hall. Unfortunately, the main building where there is a statue of Chiang Kai-Shek (similar to the Abraham Lincoln memorial in Washington DC) was closed due to maintenance. Despite this, we still looked at the small museum in honour of Chaing Kai-Shek, where his cars and furniture are. Oh, and in case you don't know who Chiang Kai-Shek is, he was a nationalist who opposed Communism, and after being defeated in battles with the Communists, he fled to Taiwan and became the President.
After this we came home and crashed. Mum went out at night to a large department store near Taipei 101 and came back with lots of clothes for Evie and George. Today we plan on going to the Taipei Zoo.

Max

 

 Amanda, our social worker in Taiwan who looked after George's and Evie's adoption

Us at Chaing Kai-Shek

 Linda and George

 Evie playing Peek-A-Boo at Chiang Kai-Shek

Dad and George at Chiang Kai-Shek

Tuesday

Hey Everyone

Yesterday, we didn't get up to much, as we were all pretty tired and we didn't want to do too much, as George is still settling in. We had a quiet morning and afternoon except for some walks, but at night, we ventured off to G'day Cafe, a restaurant that has a mix of Mexican and Italian dishes. The food was really nice. After putting Evie to sleep, Dad and I headed off to the Shilin Night Markets again, and did a second shop. Today, we are meeting Evie's and George's birth family. Then we are meeting up with our friend Linda McKerrell, for some lunch at Dan Ryan's (an American Restaurant) where for dessert, you can get the World's Smallest Sunday (It's really not that small).

Max

 Shilin Night Markets

 

George in the hotel

Tuesday morning

It's Gillian here again. Yes, I have time to post because we have a very happy, content and easy baby so far. He is eating well, giving us heaps of smiles and giggles and slept better than Evie last night! We were told to put him to bed at 9pm (rather late) and he would sleep until 6am. He woke at 5.55am after half an hour of Evie trying to wake up her new brother.

He's a real boy and eats his rice crackers like a lion ripping meat off the bone and he has a loud squawk - but we haven't heard him cry much. He loves watching Evie run around and Daddy is getting the most smiles so far.

He is a fast crawler and can stand well. He took a couple of steps at the nursery yesterday but is still quite wobbly. We have a shiny floor in the hotel so it's a little trickier for him.

Evie is coping very well with having a new sibling and her special job is to get George a nappy when he needs one. She did have a "hoarding toys" problems earlier today but is generally happy to chat to him and show him how to do things.

We were planning to go to the zoo today but it has started raining so we're seeing if it clears before we decide.

We are all so relieved that George is not too traumatised by the big change he has had to face and we are enjoying him so much. Thanks to those who were praying for us yesterday.

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures of the DGMEG Byrne family!!

Oh, we have picked up an award in Taiwan for the family who has lost the most stuff. Dylan left his headphones in the gym, we have lost Evie's hat and Blankie Bear got wrapped up in the sheets when the maids came to change the bedding (he was found after a frantic search by a lovely lady) and yesterday we left Evie's shoes at the Nursery. I'm sure the reception staff are laughing at us. Thankfully all have been returned to us. We're trying not to be so hopeless.

 This morning after a good night's sleep!

We may need a new iPad!

Fun in the bath last night.

Getting George/Monday

Hi Everyone

We got back about 2 hours ago with George.
We met him in the play area of the Nursery where he stayed.
We met him slowly, so as to not frighten him, and he warmed up to us fast.
The nursery is very well kept and clean, and we had to wear smocks and slip on sandals.
Now for some photos...

Max

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Sunday

Hi Everyone

Just a quick post.
Yesterday, during Evie's sleep, Dad and I went off to Guang Hua, 6 massive levels of electronic gear. We bought lots of stuff for very cheap prices. In the afternoon, we went to Taipei 101, but didn't go to the top. Instead we went to Eslite (Taipei's Borders/Dymocks). Then we went to a hectic store similar to Myer. At this store was a small playground crowded with children, and Evie really enjoyed it. We had dinner in the Taipei 101 food court and it was nice evening.

In 30 minutes, we are getting picked up, and we are meeting George! We are all very excited but all very nervous...hopefully I will have time to post tonight and show you lots of photos.

Max

A quick post from Gillian

I thought I would get a post in before life gets much more busy for me!! :)

We have been so fortunate with the weather so far. It is cool, clear with a warm sun. As Max said, we found some markets and had fun this morning mixing with the locals. Evie is much more relaxed today and had fun watching the live fish and turtles at a stall. I tried not to look at the bag of wriggling frogs on the ground.

Our hotel, Howard Gardens, is great. The staff are friendly, the breakfast bar good and our two room apartment (deluxe suite) is not huge on space, but is fine for us. We met a family from Perth this morning who are adopting their little boy from CSS tomorrow. It was nice to share the frustrations of waiting and nerves for tomorrow.

Sometimes my heart nearly stops when I suddenly remember the reason for us being here. This time tomorrow we will have our little George!

Gillian

Saturday

Hi Everyone

We had a pretty quiet day yesterday.

Mum and I went off during Evie’s sleep, and Mum went to the Handicraft Market (place to buy touristy gear) and I went to Nova, a large building filled with shops that sell electronic gear.

After that, we took the train home and had a quiet afternoon, and went out for dinner at a really nice Japanese restaurant.
Today we have, yet again, have enjoyed the amazing breakfast buffet and went for a walk through some local markets.

Max

 Fresh Fish

 Spices and Herbs

 Drinking some Juice after a long walk

Da Man

Friday

Hi Everyone

Things are going good.

The weather has been really good so far.

Our hotel is great - quite small and hardly any crowds - feels a bit like we have the place to ourselves, and really good location.

There is a great park around from the corner from our hotel, which Evie really loves.

Yesterday morning, we did the local museum run. We went to the Paper Museum, which was really good, and the Miniature Museum, which was "unique"…
Evie had it good...she slept through the miniatures.
We got some morning tea at a high end bakery. 1 Cheesecake slice, 3 pieces of Pesto/garlic bread, a creme brulee custard tart, and three ice teas for $9!
Took the taxi home, and Evie had one of her massive tantrums, but she calmed down after a while.
After a quiet afternoon, we went to SOGO, the Taiwanese equivalent of David Jones, but upsized. This department store had about 12 levels I think.
After putting Evie to bed, Dad and I went to the Shilin Night Markets and went shopping
These markets are incredible: It is more like a shopping centre on these streets than a normal market. Shops line the streets and sell everything from shoes to corny tourist gear. The stalls usually sell food, but Dad and I weren’t adventurous enough to try anything. Stinky Tofu is a delicacy here…it is fermented tofu that is then cooked, and guess what? It smells really bad.
After that, Dad and I got some maccas (I know, we will try and be more adventurous next time) and then went home and got a good nights sleep.
We just came back from the amazing breakfast buffet.
 
And the classic Dad comment of the day...
"If you're a lover of miniatures, then this museum is for you" (funny at the time) (after we left that glorious museum)

 

 

 

 Yummy

 Great Value right there

 World's Smallest TV! It actually works! (just a big larger than a stamp)

$9!

 

Miniatures

 Playing in the park

Thursday

Well…what can I say? What a crazy 24 hours…

We left home at about 8.30am and our flight was scheduled for 11.05
Everything was going fine until we found out that Mum’s passport was 4 days short of 6 months (what they require you to have for travel)
So We (Evie, Dad and I) decided to leave Mum in Brisbane to try and get a new passport and we ventured on.
The plane had a faulty water valve, so we were delayed for an hour.
So we left at 12pm and arrived at Hong Kong at 8pm.
Evie, considering Mum was not with us, was very calm and slept for two and a half hours (AMAZING).
You know an airport is massive when it has its own subway system.
We chased after a lady who worked at the airport for 10 minutes and made it to our plane.
The flight from Hong Kong to Taiwan is only one and a half hours, so that wasn’t too bad.
We got to Taiwan, then got to our hotel and went to bed at 11.30pm (Taiwan Time) (2 hours behind Brisbane).

So Mum rushed off to DFAT (Department Of Foreign Affairs) and after being told that she could get a passport in a matter of hours at the airport, found out that the average fastest time they can get you a new passport is about 2 days.

Despite this, Mum persisted and received her passport in 3 hours and had to wait nearly 8 hours for the next plane to Taiwan.
Mum arrived at our hotel this morning at 6.30am (Taiwan time) and we are all extremely tired and excited for Monday.

 

Max

Getting ready

This is more of a test than anything else, but we are slowly getting ready to leave.
Suitcases are out on the floor, and clothes that have been set aside for our trip, on top of the suitcases
Evie is enjoying her suitcase more than anyone else...

We leave on Thursday and pick up George on Monday